This invention relates to mirrors. This invention especially relates to mirrors with which prescription eyeglass lenses are mounted to provide vision corrected focused images at suitable distances for such tasks as applying cosmetics. Prior art patents of note include: U.S. Pat. No. 2,733,637 to Irwin S. Joseph; U.S. Pat. No. 3,374,047 to Azeline D. Gatchell; U.S. Pat. No. 3,610,738 to Carl E. Bochmann; U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,793 to Barron C. Merten et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,796 to Jose Schweiger; U.S. Pat. No. 3,632,191 to James E. Cox; U.S. Pat. No. 3,677,620 to Joseph Bettencourt; U.S. Pat. No. 3,970,369 to Phyllis Wachsman; U.S. Pat. No. 3,996,947 to Roman Szpur et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,310 to John Miller; U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,789 to Lorraine J. Roberts; U.S. Pat. No. 4,734,557 to Jean-Pascal Alfille; U.S. Pat. No. 5,442,488 to Anthony T. Pastorino; U.S Pat. No. 5,673,153 to David B. Soll; U.S. Pat. No. Des. 331,818 to James M. Holahnan et al.
Women frequently complain that although they can see themselves in a mirror with their glasses on, when the glasses are removed in order to apply make-up, their image appears blurred. Until now the only commonly available recourse was to use a magnifying mirror even though the enlarged image was frequently of poor quality. The problem is that all people have different eyes, different refractive errors and different visual needs. People who would not wear someone else""s eyeglasses should not have to use someone else""s mirror.
Attempts at improving mirrors have been frequent and wideranging. In U.S. Pat. No. 2,733,637, a mirror is set in a case where it is subjected to desired changes in curvature to make its degree of magnification variable. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,374,047, a magnifying lens is put in front of a mirror. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,610,738, as in the ""637 patent, a mirror is variable in degree of magnification. The same is true of U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,793 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,796.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,632,191 discloses a lady""s compact, understood at present to bring a magnifying lens and a non-magnifying mirror together for improved vision. U.S. Pat. No. 3,677,620 is understood at present to improve upon the construction of the ""191 patent by disclosing the grinding of the magnifying mirror to the prescription of a specific user. U.S. Pat. No. 3,970,369 criticizes the ""620 patent construction as extremely difficult to implement and relatively expensive. The ""369 patent then proposes a mirror with the equivalent of eyeglasses put near it. Just as when eyeglasses are on the face, when the eyeglasses are near the mirror as in the ""369 patent, the eyeglasses are close to the eyes and the eyes inaccessible.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,996,947 moves to lenses ground to prescription in a general sense, but more specifically, ground to an unusual vertex distance, 128 millimeters, and corrected in power. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,128,310 and 4,734,557 again provide xe2x80x9czoomxe2x80x9d mirrors; U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,789 again provides eyeglasses xe2x80x9con a stickxe2x80x9d; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,442,488 and Des. 331,818 again put magnifying lenses with mirrors. Finally, U.S Pat. No. 5,673,153 to David B. Soll provides an assembly that can selectively create optical compound corrections in images.
All these patents are incorporated by reference. All show a longstanding need. None show an adequate mirror-lens combination for the problem women and all people with vision in need of correction face with close-up mirrors when their eyes are not corrected by eyeglasses or contact lenses.
It is now possiblexe2x80x94with the invented optical systemxe2x80x94for each person to have their own custom-made mirror. The visual effect is to see one""s image as if glasses were on without having glasses on. In fact, for most people, the image they see in the mirror is better than with glasses on since the concave mirror in the invented optical system provides clear enlargement.
To custom-fit the mirror, a refractive prescription is supplied by the individual""s Ophthalmologist or Optometrist. This prescription is part of every normal eye examination and entails no extra work for the doctor. In fact, the prescription is identical to the distance vision portion of the refraction. The invented optical system is like a super bifocal. An overlying lens supplies the distance correction (including correction of astigmatism) of the user, and a concave mirror supplies the magnification of the xe2x80x9cbifocal add.xe2x80x9d The invented optical system departs sharply from systems using variable or xe2x80x9czoomxe2x80x9d mirrors; systems using common magnifying lenses with mirrors; and systems putting eyeglasses on sticks or other supports to be used close to the eyes with more distant mirrors.
In a preferred embodiment, a non-magnifying corrective lens is adjacent a mirror such that a xe2x80x9cworking distancexe2x80x9d from the lens and mirror combination a focused, corrected, reflected image is created of an object at the working distance. By placing the eyes and face at the working distance, the user for whom the lens is corrective may see the focused, corrected, reflected image of the eyes and face. The user may see the image without having eyeglasses on or contact lenses in. The corrective lens may be a lens from a common eyeglass blank, without special grinding or other special effect. The result is an economical, simple to implement, non-Rube-Goldberg personalized mirror. As desired, the mirror, as opposed to the lens, may be concave and have a magnifying power.
The power of the concave mirror is determined by the doctor and this power depends on the individual""s needs and the health of the eyes. For example, a person with macular degeneration would require more magnification.
A distinct advantage of the invented optical system is its simplicity. Standard size eyeglass-quality optical lenses are used as most preferred without additional edging or other special effects. Matching 3 inch diameter magnifying mirrors are employed as most preferred that are readily available in various powers. The whole system, again as most preferred, may literally snap together in less than 2 minutes. Moreover, since the system is modular, in its highest refinement, its parts do not have to be discarded every time there is a change in a person""s refraction. A new lens or mirror may be substituted as necessary.
The invention is suitable for at least the following uses: application of eye and face make-up, insertion of contact lenses, removal of superficial foreign bodies from the eye, such as eyelashes, plucking of eyebrows, as a shaving mirror for men, for insertion of eye drops or eye ointments, and as a low vision aid for those with macular degeneration, cataract, glaucoma or diabetic eye disease.
Selection of proper lens correction and mirror power depends on an individual""s refractive error and whether eyes are healthy or diseased. The invented optical system accommodates both convex and concave lenses (with or without correction for astigmatism) and accommodates mirrors ranging in power from Plano (no magnification) to about 7xc3x97 magnification, more or less.